Comic Formatting: Scroll or Traditional?

[krazycafetales262]

I really appreciated people's opinion on the anthology topic, so I am coming in with another question.

When it comes to comic formatting, do you prefer the traditional way or vertical scrolling?

I'm planning another series but I don't know which way to go. As a creator and reader, I prefer traditional but I get it may not be the easiest to read online.

For those interested, I'll upload what my style looks like in both formats below.

traditional

scrolling

[thepenmonster]

Grasping for the brass ring means feeding the mindless scrollers. Since they don't actually read the comic it gives you a lot of room to skimp on things like backgrounds and good dialog.

The thing is, people will only remember you by the end result. If you make a comic in a way that makes you happy to draw the results will be far better. If a print shape brings you joy, it will only result in a much better comic.

[kyupol]

I prefer vertical scroll. And I think more people do in this day and age.

My newest comic has 300+ subs vs my previous one that has 100+ subs.

Art or plot hasn't really improved much.

[LavenderLeavened]

I will always recommend page format especially if you have plans to print in the future

pages are a lot easier to storyboard than scroll and if you make yours with the right size then you can actually make a scroll formatted version with the panels from the pages
if you're stuck between the two you can always try both. try uploading a regular version and then a scroll version

it's also worth noting that sites like tapas and webtoons are more likely to feature and promote your comic on their pages if it is in scroll format

[emedeme]

I'm here with @LavenderLeavened ! If you plan to print in the future, page format is the way to go (and it will save you so many headaches and adjustments). Maybe vertical scroll is easier to draw and can attract more readers who are into the "webtoon" format, but I feel traditional page format allows to play better with composition and narrative.

But in the end, just try what works better for you (and what you'd also prefer as a reader!)

[ArtGremlin]

I feel traditional page format allows to play better with composition and narrative.

My current comic is in Scroll format, but I wish I knew better how to utilize traditional format. Whenever I see traditional format comics that use panel shapes to help guide the story, I go wow so pretty. So someday I want to make a comic in traditional format so I can print it as well.

[gigadrillsnake]

I will always love the traditional page format. Maybe just because I started off reading comic books instead of webcomics but I think it has certain advantages too. No shade towards all the wonderful scrolling artists.

[wolflu66]

Since more and more people are reading webtoons, I'm also trying to create in this format.

But actually, whether as a reader or creator, I prefer the traditional manga format.
Scroll-based comics can't match traditional page-based comics in presenting many scenes.

[annuskabriar]

Much much prefer page format. Mostly read comics on comicfury because of that I'm ngl, it's better suited for page format

[Oriflamme]

As a reader, I don’t care as long as the format does not hinder the story.

As a comic creator, I prefer the scroll format, since it is easier for me to plan and write, with less constraint on the pacing. I don’t have to do a puzzle every time I create a new page.

[Zhengo]

I grew up reading manga on legally questionable websites, so I do prefer page over scrolling. I think another reason is I tend to prefer reading on my tablet or computer over my phone, and on scroll format, it always ends up feeling like the panels are so big for me

[GothickangelStudios]

I do traditional myself. Its a manga not a webtoon format. So makes sense.
Most of my readers prefer the traditional way compared to scroll.
And traditonal seems to be more popular by like 90% out of 100% on my uncensored site.
I have both options on there.

[BoomerZ]

I enjoy the scrolling as it fits a phone or tablet. It took a while to figure out what you can do with scrolling, but as soon as you do it opens up possibilities.

[emedeme]

It's super challenging but I feel like you can be more playful with compositions, but it takes a lot of hard work and research (so if you like reading comics, you get to learn a lot hahahah)

[krazycafetales262]

Loving the conversation everyone! As for me, I think I might go traditional.

I'm doing this for fun anyway. Might as well choose the format I like and a lot of you seem to like as well.

[jwabeasley]

Vertical scroll seems to perform better on average. I don't do it though because I hate endless scrolling for shallow content.

Stacked pages are probably the best way to go. 4-6 print pages on top of each other can give you the benefits of a scroll comic without the limitations.